Expedited action chemicals: EPA posts guidance on requesting risk evaluation.

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Seven chemicals will be subject to the expedited action provision of the amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) unless manufacturers nominate them for risk evaluation by September 19. However, the scope of the risk evaluation will not be limited even if the manufacturer requests evaluation of only certain uses.

EPA recently posted online guidance interpreting the expedited action provision, which was added by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act. EPA must propose rules by June 22, 2019 to restrict or regulate certain persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals identified in the 2014 update to the TSCA Work Plan. The chemicals subject to expedited action are:

  • Decabromodiphenyl ethers (DecaBDE) (CASRN 1163-19-5)
  • Ethanone, 1-(1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8-octahydro-2,3,5,5-tetramethyl-2-naphthalenyl)- (CASRN 54464-59-4)
  • Ethanone, 1-(1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8-octahydro-2,3,8,8-tetramethyl-2-naphthalenyl)- (CASRN 54464-57-2)
  • Hexachlorobutadiene (CASRN 87-68-3)
  • Pentachlorothio-phenol (CASRN 133-49-3)
  • Phenol, isopropylated, phosphate (3:1) (iPTPP) (CASRN 68937-41-7)
  • 2,4,6-Tris(-tert-butyl)phenol (CASRN 732-26-3)

Under this provision, EPA is not required to conduct a risk assessment and may impose one or more of a variety of restrictions so that the chemical no longer presents an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment. The agency may levy prohibitions or restrictions on manufacturing, processing, or distribution for a certain use or in excess of a certain concentration. EPA is also authorized to set requirements for record-keeping, testing, or marking substances with warnings. These expedited actions must “address the risks of injury to health or the environment …presented by the chemical substance” and “reduce exposure to the substance to the extent practicable.”

The new guidance also provides instructions on how manufacturers should submit their requests for a risk evaluation, including new requirements for making claims for Confidential Business Information (CBI).

Manufacturers requesting risk revaluations will be required to pay a fee, which will be set by a rule which EPA expects to finalize by June 22, 2017. The guidance notes that risk evaluation requests may not be withdrawn and will be considered “a firm commitment …to pay for the risk evaluation.”

In addition to requesting a risk evaluation, a chemical may also be removed from expedited action eligibility if EPA designates it as a high-priority substance for risk evaluation. In either case, any subsequent regulation of the chemical must “reduce exposure to the substance to the extent practicable.”